Just like the people in the grand stories, one step at a time we are approaching something epic. A Faire five year total of $100,000 US. Now, if you’d ask me a week ago I’d have said that we might get there by the end of the RFL season in July. Now? We could be there by Sunday. A 2013 total of $24,000 US would get us to that five year total of $100K. So. What do ya think? Sound like a goal? (Watch that total rise on a kiosk near you or at http://tinyurl.com/FF2013Total ) – Zander Greene
As we leave the forest of Fairelands Junction the light shifts, shadows slide across the ground and day turns to a subtle orange evening. We have arrived in Magnificat, sponsored by Fallen Gods and Built by Fallen Gods owner Alia Baroque. Alia has been building at the Faire since its inception 5 years ago and his creation last year “The Tides”, is one of the strongest images I retain from that year and this leaves the question, “what next?”
The answer is Magnificat. Where The Tides was an over the top, outrageous, fantasy rendering of a grecko-roman sea port, its brash towering statues a stand against the forces of nature, Magnificat is elegant, picturesque and if grand architecture cannot be considered understated, it is at least softly spoken.
Photo By Beq Janus
Magnificat will be best remembered for its oil painting-like quality, achieved in large part by the light hued stones and the soft evening lighting. Bisected by a wide river, Magnificat’s views are dominated by the yachts. Sailing noiselessly from beneath the bridge on the western border, they traverse the region, sailing into the void sea beyond where they duly vanish without a trace. For those willing to scratch beneath the surface there are surprises too.
Like so many of the regions created for Fantasy Faire, Magnificat is not just a themed build. It is too easy to consider that the stunning visuals are simply the work of a talented builder and to miss the metaphorical content. Each of the regions has its theme and its inspirations drawn from cultural history, from literature and art and very often they carry a message and it is the power of the Fairelands that people find both common and personal messages in the layers of the builds.
Amid the bustle of business and the hectic hunting, people find a poignancy that speaks to them. Magnificat has poignancy in spades, there is something distinctly calming, cathartic even about watching the graceful yachts slide into oblivion to be replaced, renewed once more beneath the bridge.
I cannot tell you that Alia surpassed The Tides in creating Magnificat, they are not directly comparable in such mundane terms. I can tell you that Magnificat is a worthy successor to The Tides and a tribute to the creator, Alia Baroque.
Reluctantly we must move on, there are many regions yet to visit. Our next destination will feel very different, we will be exploring Laufey Markstein’s, Stephen King inspired, Crimson Fields.
Prim Perfect 